Curtain-roller



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N. PETERS, PHOTU-UTHOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON. D C.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEicE.

DAVID N. B. COFFIN, JR., OF NEWVTON CENTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

CURTAIN-ROLLER.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 18,328, dated October 6, 1857.

To all 'whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, DAVID N. B. CorEIN, J r., of Newton Center, in thecounty of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new anduseful Improved Curtain- Fixture; and I do hereby declare that thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of thisspecification, and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

Explanation of Zmwz'nga-Figure 1, is a front elevation of a curtain andfixture. Fig. 2, is a vertical, longitudinal section through axis ofroller, &c. Fig. 3, is a side elevation of a bracket viewed from inside.Fig. 4, is an elevation of the right hand end of the curtain fixture.Fig. 5, is a transverse section through the roller, curtain, and stripd. Fig. 6, is a transverse section through a roller showing one of anumber of modifications of the shape of the space below the strip whichmay be made. Fig. 7 Fig. 8, and Fig. 9, show others. That in Fig. 8being adapted in shape' and proportions to be made of sheet metal. Fig.10, shows another similar section showing a modification of the shape ofthe strip d. Fig. 11, shows another section of roll and strip adapted inform and proportions to be made of sheet metal. Fig. 12, shows an endview of the fixture in which the bracket is made of metal the lower partof the bracket being of suitable form and elasticity, to act as a springas well as a support for the roll. Fig. 13, is a plan of the-samebracket and the flange 71. of the pulley. Fig. 14, shows a bracket tomatch this and supporting the opposite end of the roll. Fig. 15, showsone of the caps in section with a screw formed on its inner surface.

Like letters indicate the same or similar parts in all the figures.

My improvement relates to the construction of the roller so as to securea degree of elasticity by which the sides of the groove are made to actas a spring clamp or spring vise to hold the curtain with its strip andso obviating the inconvenience arising from the fact that the stripsfrequently vary in thickness so' much as to make it difiicult to forcesome of them into the groove as ordinarily constructed while others goin too easily. And so that the caps also may be made to compress thesides of the grooves upon the curtain and its strip thereby clamping thecurtain doubly secure, and whereby I also avoid the necessity of fittingthe caps over the ends of the strip as has heretofore been necessary tohold' the strip in the groove. And so I am enabledmore conveniently tofasten the curtain to the roll, and to use the entire length of the rollbetween the inner flanges of the caps, with the pulley cap permanentlyfast, which cannot be done when the strip is held in by fitting the capsover its ends.

It is usual in curtain fixtures where the grooved roll is used to fitthe strip and groove to each other as near as practicable so that whenthe curtain with the strip is pressed into the ro-ll they shall justfill the groove. But as the groove is made shallow so that the sides arerigid it must frequently occur that the strip with the curtain more thanfills the groove, and from different causes sometimes imperfection inadapting the size of the strip to that of the groove and at other timesvariation in the thickness of the cloth, &c., so that it becomes quitedifficult to force them into the groove, but what is still worse thestrip is sometimes too small with the curtain to fill the groove (it isvery liable to be so because with the rigid sides Vof the common grooveit must not exceed a certain size else it could not be pressed in at allwhereas it might readily be pressed in to the elastic roll) in whichcase there is no provision for effectually keeping it in for the capsfitted over the ends of the strip though they keep the ends of the stripin do not provide for the middle, the strip never being made nor can itbe made except by the aid of my improvement stiff enough to hold its ownmiddle in, and again as before intimated it is always desirable that thecap which is connected with the pulley should be permanently glued orotherwise fastened to the roll. Now the end of the strip which is to beheld in by this cap in the usual manner has to be slipped under itbefore the strip with the curtain is pressed into the groove, but to dothis it will be seen that the curtain cannot occupy the roll close i iAAW W to the fiange of the pulley or cap, by considerable, so that thisspace is lost, whereas with my improved method in which the strip doesnot extend under the caps at all and in which there is no need of itsdoing so, the curtain can occupy the entire length of roll between theflanges, can also be applied with facility, and be held with certaintyas I will proceed to explain. And first, I make the roll, if of woodabout the usual size, and the part of the groove which is nearthesurface of the roll of about the usual size. Then I remove enough ofthe central portion of the roll so as to avail myself of the naturalelasticity of the wood, and so that thereby the sides of the groove nearthe surface where the strip will press against them may bear to beforced apart somewhat or clamped nearer together by forcing on the caps.See section of roll, curtain, and strip Figs. 5, 6, 7, 9, and l0.

To one end of the roll I fit a cap Z2, connected to which is the pulleyi, for the cord. This cap is fitted on to the end of the roll, or atenon thereon reduced somewhat from the full size as see Fig. 2. Thiscap I prefer to glue on permanently as then it will always run true, theother end of the roll is cut off to the proper length when it is beingfitted to the window, and a cap c, with a socket slightly smaller thanthe diameter of the roll so as to be sure the roll shall lill is fittedon, but this socket or the end of the roll or both are made a littletapering so that when the cap is pressed on it shall clamp or spring thesides of the groove toward each other so clamping the curtain and itsstrips. The strips should be made sufficiently wide to fill with thecurtain and groove, because if a strip should be a little too large thesides of the groove will yield and let it in. In put-ting in the stripand curtain the cap c should be removed and then the end of the curtainlaid upon or in the groove, after which the end of the strip should beplaced against the flange on cap Z), to bring it in the proper positionlengthwise; then the opposite end should first be pressed in with, or bythe side of, the curtain as the sides of the groove yield more easily atthat end, after which it will enter and press in readily all along tothe extreme end neX't to the fast pulley after which the cap c, beingpressed on to the end of the roll the whole is securely clamped. rI`hepulley cap b, may be left off till the curtain and strip are put in ifso preferred, in which case it will make no difference which end of thestrip is pressed in first. It is well where the roller is very long tomake the strip (l, a little wider or thicker in the middle so as tospread the groove a little more in the middle than at the ends which mayrender more perfect the clamping of it and the curtain in the mid lengthof the roll.

When the end of the curtain has a hem the strip maybe put through it asshown in Fig. 7. IVithout the hem it may be clamped on both sides of thestrip as shown in Figs. 5,9, l0, and ll. But a. neater way is to dropthe end of the curtain right into the space in the roll and clamp itonly on oney side of the strip as shown in Figs. 6, and 8. lith myelastic roll it will be held securely either way and may be done asconveniently one way as the other. The way last named in which the endof the curtain is out of sight is the neatest and cannot conveniently beadopted except with my improvement for two reasons, the want of thecentral space, and the clamping device to render it sufficiently secureand which will allow of one thickness of cloth as well as two or more atpleasure.

Fig. 10, shows the inner corners of the strip chamfered which some mightprefer as it could be pressed in when the pulley cap b, is permanentlyfast to the roll without regard to which of the ends were pressed infirst.

Figs. 8 and l1, represent the sections of two rolls of different formsboth of which are made of sheet metal such as tin, Zinc, etc. Fig. 8,shows a wood strip such as those in the wood rolls. In Fig. l1, thesides of the groove are concave and a round strip is used. In either ofthese cases the rolls being of metal would have suflicient strength andelasticity so that the`curtain and its strip would be clampedsufficiently secure though the caps were dispensed with and the pulleyand ournals attached in the most simple manner.

Fig. l5, shows a cap of metal having an internal' screw, so that it maybe screwed on to the wooden roll forming itsv corresponding screw as itis turned thereon to clamp the roll. The pulley cap b, may well beprovided with a screw like this when made of metal.

Fig. 8 shows the bracket a, in which is an additional screw hole bywhich it may be attached to the jamb casing of the window if desired,the other bracket e being provided with a similar one and attached inthe same manner. The usual way of applying the brackets however is tothe face casing or architrave as indicated by the screwholes shown inFigs. l and 2. Each of the caps c, and Z2, have small journals or pivotswhich form the axles of the roller.

Being aware that the grooved roll and strip as ordinarily constructedhave long been known and used and are therefore public property I ofcourse do not claim either of them, and being also aware that theholding of the strip in the groove by means of caps fitted over itsends, is covered by Letters Patent, I do not claim, nor shall I use thatas I have invented, described, and shall claim a much superior method;but having I claim- 10 given such illustration, description and eX- Thegrooved roll made elastic substanplanation of my improvements as I deemtially as described, and so clamping` the cursuiicent to enable theOEce, and others tain and its strip With or Without the caps. skilled insuch matters to understand the nature, construction and operationthereof, DAVID N' B' COFFIN JR' I Will proceed to state what I claim asmy Witnesses:

invention and desire to secure by Letters FREDK. RICHARDS,

Patent as follows: CEAS. E. PIKE.

